


Savage Blow

by MidwesternDuchess



Series: Scripted Scenes [3]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuuin no Tsurugi | Fire Emblem: Binding Blade
Genre: F/M, Lilina is an incredible character and deserves more love 2k18, have some emotional Binding Blade stuff, hey remember when Lilina burned a man alive for killing her dad because boy I do, with bonus Roy/Lilina because hi I ship that A Lot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-04
Updated: 2018-03-04
Packaged: 2019-03-26 19:56:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13864902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MidwesternDuchess/pseuds/MidwesternDuchess
Summary: "Anger, the spring of all life’s horror, masters my resolve.” -Euripides(The insult is a struck match, and the wrath of a warrior’s daughter catches and burns.)





	Savage Blow

"Lady Lilina?"

Leygance sounds surprised—Lilina can't imagine why. She advances towards the General, tome open in her hand, eyes alight with anger as the battle rages around them. She hears the shriek of swords and shields and spells, but she has eyes only for the man who betrayed her father—the man who tried to sell her home to the highest bidder.

She is the blood of Ostia—daughter of Lycia's greatest warrior. Flames lick at her fingertips and ashes trail behind her. Leygance should have known better—fire does not know fear.

The General leers at her from atop her father's throne as she takes a stance opposite him, fingers of her free hand splayed out at her side. She's more than ready for a fight—she _wants_ it. Adrenaline surges through her blood—burning her from the inside-out.

"Damn, you were supposed to be dead by now."

Lilina bares her teeth in a look that's more snarl than smirk as she faces down one of her country's most seasoned knights. She's all but overheating with her hate, but even still, she can't unsee the man who stood by her father's side through every war council, the man who swore to protect her.

"Why?" she demands, word coated with sheer _hurt_. "Leygance… _why?"_

She understands hate—of course she does. The hot flash of rage and disgust and fury she feels for this man greets her like an old friend. But betrayal is so ugly and sharp and visceral she can't wrap her mind around the raw _dishonestly_ of it all. Leygance works his jaw, glaring back at the princess.

"Times are changing, my lady." He doesn't mock the title—he seems surprised the words even came out of his mouth. _Habit._ It just makes his treachery cut deeper. "I'm just making sure I don't get left behind. I'm not like Lord Hector, who was too foolish to recognize the change."

His words are a struck match, and Lilina's temper catches fire.

_"_ _Silence!"_ she screams.

Her order rings out in the hall, nearly drowned out by the roar of fire she summons with a sweep of her hand. Leygance leans back, awed by the intensity of her spell, eyes wide with surprise. Lilina's chest heaves with the effort, but she steels her resolve—allows herself to bask in the warmth of the fire that snaps and crackles around her.

"You will not insult my father any further!"

She lunges for him, and the fight is on.

Lord Hector was informed of his daughter's natural aptitude for magic when she was still quite young, and her skills were developed early, resulting in premature displays of impressive spells and enchantments. She was pushed further still under the tutelage of Cecilia, the Mage General of Etruria, who often sparred against the fledging princess herself, refusing to coddle or spoil her. Lilina thrived under the pressure of it all, and now it seems, she's reaping her reward as she spins and ducks and twists—always a step and a half ahead of the traitor as she rains down _fire—_

Leygance wilts in the devastating presence of Ostia's princess—pressed back as she advances recklessly. Her fingertips begin to char as fire burns away in her hands, flames licking up her arms until she appears to be utterly shrouded in some sort of unholy hellfire.

As she stands above him—House Ostia victorious again—the flames roar around her, and she feels nothing.

No relief. No reprieve.

Just anger.

_"_ _Why…?"_ Leygance chokes out, and Lilina lifts her hand on instinct, an incantation already on her lips—

"You are only to be trampled upon by Bern…how can you…fight so…hard…?"

A thousand rebuttals come to mind—kind as she is, Lilina's temper is legendary, and her tongue is as sharp as any sword—but she remains silent, turning her back.

Leygance has already taken enough from her—she won't give him the satisfaction of taking any more.

With her father's throne free of would-be usurpers, Lilina turns back to the battle at large, and realizes things are going rather well. She spies a few knights she recognizes from her summers in Pherae and realizes that Lord Eliwood must have come.

She quickens her pace, determined to find out what happened, discover who knew about the coup, restore stability to the castle, find her _father—_

A hand suddenly settles on her shoulder and she whips around, preparing to summon another scorching spell, when her gaze meets—

_"_ _Roy!"_ Lilina barely remembers to dispel her magic before surging forward to sieze her friend in a hug, holding him tightly. She smells like a bonfire and he looks like he hasn't slept in days, but for a moment they just stand there, hanging on to each other like they're the last real things in the world.

After a moment, they step apart. Roy winces as his hand ghosts towards his ribs, and Lilina's eyes go wide at the bloodstain smeared across his stomach, but before she can speak up, he's placed a hand on her arm, giving it a comforting squeeze.

"We've finally recaptured the castle, Lilina," he tells her, trying for a smile. His voice is strained, but sturdy, and Lilina can only smile back.

"Thank you, Roy," she murmurs. She sags slightly, exhaustion settling in as her adrenaline high wears off. "I'm glad that my father won't have to go through the trouble."

She lowers her eyes to study her charred fingertips— _that's probably something a healer should look at,_ she muses off-handedly—and as a result, misses the shock that goes through Roy at her words.

"Roy, is my father still in Araphen?" she glances up, casting her gaze around, half-expecting to see her father storming in—cape swirling at his ankles, Armads crackling with power, his eyes gleaming with the promise of a fight. Her lips quirk slightly at the image and she looks back to Roy. "I heard that the battle there was tough. Does it look like it's going to take much longer?"

"Lilina…" Roy is gazing back her with an uneasy twist to his words. He's hesitant, suddenly—apprehensive. "Have you…heard anything?"

Lilina's eyebrows slant down in confusion, anger spiking again.

"What? _Heard_ anything?" She wrinkles her nose, pulling away from him. Her arm slips through his fingers easily, and they step apart. Roy is rooted to the spot. "Roy, I was a _prisoner_ here, you think I've been informed of—?"

Roy swallows. Lilina just stares at him, her body still shaking slightly—echoes of adrenaline.

"Lord Hector…" Roy ducks her gaze then, looking away. Lilina's stomach drops. "…has passed away."

_"_ _There's a fire inside you,"_ Cecilia used to tell her during lessons. _"It bloomed to life the moment you were born, and burns brightly to this day."_ Lilina had laughed with delight as the great Mage Knight had produced a small, flickering flame at her fingertips. _"So long as you retain your fighting spirit—so long as you keep the essence of Ostia and your heritage alive in you—that fire will never, ever extinguish."_

Lilina clutches blindly at her heart—she feels so _cold._

"I'm sorry," Roy rushes out. He steps forward to take hold of her arm again, and Lilina is too numb to stop him—too numb to feel his touch. "When we arrived at Castle Araphen, it was already under Bern's control, Lilina…" His voice burns with regret. "I'm so sorry."

Lilina stands stock-still—her heart cuts all ties with her chest and free-falls to the depths below. She swallows—hard.

"It's not your fault." She doesn't know how she manages to push the words out, but she does. Lilina tightens her tenacity, curling her hand into a fist. "Don't…don't apologize."

Roy is watching her anxiously—she can feel his gaze even as she stares sightlessly ahead—seeing nothing, feeling less. "Lord Hector was already severely wounded when we arrived." The hesitance is back—Lilina can hear his trepidation. _He's deciding how much to tell you,_ she realizes, and her blood _burns_. "If only we had gotten there earlier…maybe we could have saved him…"

"No." Lilina's voice cracks, and she hates herself for it. She forces herself to meet Roy's gaze, glaring in the face of his concern. "It's okay. I…I was prepared for this." A sob threatens to bubble up her chest and she ruthlessly chokes it down. Roy's fingers tighten where he holds her arm. "I'm a warrior's daughter…" Tears prick at her eyes—hot and bright. "I've…been taught not to panic in times like this."

She wonders why Roy is shaking her, when she realizes—dully—she's the one shaking.

"…Lilina."

"It's—it's fine." Lilina coughs on a sob, roughly wiping her eyes. She can't cry—not now, not with so much to do, her people need her she can't just _cry—_

Roy stands beside her, looking desperate to help but unsure how. His hands hover awkwardly in the space between them as she tries to bite back another bawl.

"So…so nobody was going to tell me?" she asks, looking back to Roy, who fidgets under her tearful glare. "You all knew, you should have—" a sob splinters her words, and her shoulders shake "—someone should have _told_ me, Roy. _Immediately."_

"I'm sorry," Roy says softly. His hand settles on her shoulder. "So much was happening, Lilina. I think everyone was just happy to find you alive, we weren't thinking of anything else."

Lilina feels empty. Her roaring fire—the Bolganone tome of her heart—is a pile of ashes, seeping through her ribcage to litter the pits of her stomach.

_Dead. Father is_ _**dead—** _

"They're just too considerate," she chokes out. She squeezes her eyes shut and ducks her head to bury it in the slope of Roy's neck, free hand coming up to grip the front of his cloak tightly.

_Don't cry. Father wouldn't have cried. You are a warrior's daughter—the blood of Ostia._

"…I'm not…that _weak…"_

"Lilina…" Roy trails off, lifting one arm to tentatively wrap around her shoulders. "You don't have to hold back…it's just me."

"Roy…I…" Words fail her—Lilina breaks down sobbing.

Troubled, Roy pulls Ostia's princess closer, tucking her under his chin as her gathers her up in his arms.

"It's okay…" he soothes softly, his voice hoarse from shouting during the battle. He dully realizes their new proximity is causing him to bleed straight through his shirt and onto her tunic. He doubts she'll even notice.

"I'll be here for you."

**Author's Note:**

> DAY THREE AND WE'RE CUTTING IT CLOSE
> 
> this isn't the fic I had planned for today but I actually _lost_ the doc for that fic which was 1) very upsetting and 2) not something I was looking to rewrite all in one day.
> 
> but anyway, have some Binding Blade (or Sword of Seals, depending on your translation) Lilina is such a good character, and I'm especially drawn to the fact that she's driven by the desire to uphold her father's legacy and that's usually such a Guy Trope so to see it carried out by a girl is A++ and she displays so many different sides of herself over the course of the game and her attack stat is Sky Fucking High okay
> 
> ~~The guy who directed Echoes says he wants to remake Binding Blade and y'all if that happens I'm gonna fucking scream~~
> 
> god I'm getting so off-track but yes hi this is the scene in Binding Blade where Ostia has been captured and Hector has been betrayed and killed by his General, Leygance. if you attack Leygance with Lilina (which I _do not_ recommend in-game because he will _eat her_ ) it prompts this boss dialogue. After that, Roy and Lilina talk, and Roy has to break the news about Hector to Lilina. I think I only added like, two lines just to make the conversation flow a little smoother. other than that, it's all canon dialogue that you can read [here.](https://serenesforest.net/binding-blade/scripts/translation-script/chapter-8-reunion/) (you might have to skip around a bit to find it but it's there I promise)
> 
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> 
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